www.library.unh.edu/special/index.php/betty-and-barney-hillBetty and Barney Hillen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_and_Betty_HillBetty and Barney Hill were an American married couple who claimed to have been abducted by extraterrestrials on September 19–20, 1961.
The couple's story, called the Hill Abduction, and occasionally the Zeta Reticuli Incident, was that they had been kidnapped for a short time by a UFO. Theirs was the first widely-publicized claim of alien abduction, adapted into the best-selling 1966 book The Interrupted Journey and a television movie.
The Hills lived in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Barney (1922–1969) was employed by the U.S. Postal Service, while Betty (1919–2004) was a social worker. Active in a Unitarian congregation, the Hills were also members of the NAACP and community leaders, and Barney sat on a local board of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission.
A mixed-race couple at the time in the U.S. was unusual: Barney was of African-American ancestry, and Betty was Caucasian.
According to a variety of reports given by the Hills, the alleged abduction happened on the evening of September 19, 1961 around 10 p.m. The Hills were driving back to Portsmouth from a vacation in Quebec, Canada. There were only a few other cars on the road as they made their way home. Just south of Groveton, New Hampshire, they claimed to have observed a bright point of light in the sky. While Barney navigated U.S. Route 3, Betty reasoned that she was observing a communication satellite since it moved erratically and urged Barney to stop the car for a closer look, as well as to walk their dog, Delsey. Worried about the presence of bears, Barney carried a pistol that he had in the trunk of the car.
Betty, whose sister had confided to her about having a flying saucer sighting several years earlier thought it may be what they were encountering. Barney grabbed a pair of binoculars in order to get a better look at the strange light. When he looked through them, he saw multicolored lights and a row of windows with "beings" standing within sight. Barney originally thought the light was a conventional aircraft since they were near Pease Air Force Base.
The Hills claimed that they continued driving on the isolated road, moving very slowly in order to observe the object as it came even closer. They stated that it seemed to have been moving in unison with the topography and dipped in front of the peaks and descended slowly in their direction. At one point the object appeared to land on top of Cannon Mountain, but quickly began moving again.
Approximately one mile south of Indian Head, they said, a huge craft rapidly descended toward the Hills' vehicle causing Barney to stop directly in the middle of the highway. The craft descended to approximately 80–100 feet above the Hills' 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air and filled the entire field of the windshield. Barney, carrying his pistol, stepped away from the vehicle and moved closer to the object. Using the binoculars, Barney claimed to have seen about 8 to 11 humanoid figures who were peering out of the craft's windows, seeming to look at him. The one remaining figure continued to look at Barney and communicated a message telling him to "stay where you are and keep looking." Red lights on what appeared to be bat-wing fins began to telescope out of the sides of the craft and a long structure descended from the bottom of the craft. The silent craft approached to what Barney estimated was within 50–80 feet overhead and 50–100 feet away from him.
Barney tore the binoculars away from his eyes and ran back to his car, saying, "They're going to capture us!" (Clark, 276) He saw the object again shift its location to directly above the vehicle. He drove away at high speed, telling Betty to look for the object. She rolled down the window and looked up, but saw only darkness above them.
Almost immediately the Hills heard a beep which Betty described similar to a microwave and then another beep. At which point they were 35 miles from where they originally were. From later recollections, they recall their car vibrating and stalling. Betty touched the metal on the passenger door expecting to feel an electric shock, but felt only the vibration. The Hills say they experienced the onset of an altered state of consciousness that left their minds dulled, and that they also felt a tingling sensation throughout their bodies.
Arriving home at about dawn, the Hills assert that they had some odd sensations and impulses they could not readily explain: Betty insisted that their luggage be kept near the back door rather than in the main part of the house. Barney noted that the leather strap for the binoculars was torn, though he could not recall it tearing. Barney says he was compelled to examine his genitals in the bathroom, though he found nothing unusual. They took long showers to remove possible contamination and each drew a picture of what they had observed. Their drawings were similar.
Perplexed, the Hills say they tried to reconstruct the chronology of events as they witnessed the UFO and drove home. But immediately after they heard the buzzing sounds their memories became incomplete and fragmented, and they could not determine a continuous chain of events. Barney recalled saying "Oh no, not again", though he could not place the comment in context. (Clark, 277)
After sleeping for a few hours, Betty woke and placed the shoes and clothing she had worn during the drive into her closet, observing that the dress was torn at the hem, zipper and lining. Later, when Betty retrieved the items from her closet, she noted a pinkish powder on her dress, but had no idea where it might have come from. She threw the dress away, but later changed her mind, retrieving the dress and hanging it on a clothesline. The powder vanished in the wind, though Betty says a few pink stains were left on the dress. Over the years, she said, five laboratories have conducted chemical and forensic analysis on the dress.
Initial report to the U.S. Air Force
On September 21, Betty telephoned Pease Air Force Base to report their UFO encounter, though, for fear of being labeled insane, she withheld some of the details. On September 22, Major Paul W. Henderson telephoned the Hills for a more detailed interview, lasting about 30 minutes. Henderson's report, dated September 26, determined that the Hills had probably misidentified the planet Jupiter. His report was forwarded to Project Blue Book, the U.S. Air Force's UFO research project.
Within days of the encounter, Betty borrowed several UFO books from a local library. One had been written by retired Marine Corps Major Donald E. Keyhoe, who was also the head of NICAP, a civilian UFO research group.
Within two weeks of the UFO encounter, Betty says she was troubled with recurrent nightmares. They occurred almost nightly, and were so vivid that her mind was occupied with thoughts of the dream throughout the day.
On September 26, Betty wrote to Keyhoe. She related the full story, including the details about the humanoid figures that she had neglected to report to the Air Force. Betty wrote that she and Barney were considering hypnosis to help recall what had happened. Her letter was eventually passed on to Walter N. Webb, a Boston astronomer and NICAP member.
The Webb interview
Webb met the Hills on October 21, 1961. In a six-hour interview, the Hills related all they could remember of the UFO encounter. Barney asserted that he had a sort of "mental block" regarding the encounter, and that he suspected there were some portions of the event that he did not wish to remember.
Webb speculated that the couple's panic regarding a close UFO sighting had generated Betty's nightmares.
In November 1961, Betty began writing down the details of her vivid, recurrent nightmares.
In the dream, Betty seemed to be struggling to regain consciousness; she then realized that she was being forced by two small men to walk in a forest in the nighttime, and of seeing Barney walking alongside her, though when she called to him, he seemed to be in a trance or sleepwalking. The small men stood about five feet tall, and wore matching uniforms, with caps similar to those worn in the U.S. Air Force. They had no hair on their heads, and had large bulbous foreheads.
In the dreams, Betty, Barney, and the small men walked up a ramp into a disc-shaped craft of metallic appearance. Once inside, Barney and Betty were separated. She protested, and was told by a man she called "the leader" that if she and Barney were examined together, it would take much longer to conduct the exams. She and Barney were then taken to separate rooms. Though the leader and the other men spoke to her in English, their command of the language seemed imperfect, and they had difficulty communicating.
Betty then dreamt that a new man, similar to the others, entered to conduct her exam with the leader. Betty called this new man "the examiner" and said he had a pleasant, calm manner.
The examiner told Betty that he would conduct a quick exam and a few tests to note the differences between humans and the craft's inhabitants. He seated her on a chair, and a bright light was shone on her. The man cut off a lock of Betty's hair. He examined her eyes, ears, mouth, teeth, throat and hands. He saved trimmings from her fingernails. After examining her legs and feet, the man then used a dull knife, similar to a letter opener to scrape some of her skin on to a glass slide.
The doctor removed Betty's dress. He told her to lie on a table. Saying he was examining her nervous system, he dragged a machine somewhat resembling an EEG device over her front and back body. The doctor cleaned his hands with a liquid and put examination gloves on. He took out a hypodermic needle some four to six inches long to conduct what he said was a pregnancy exam. He used a wet swab on her navel. He thrust the needle into it, which caused Betty agonizing pain, but the doctor rubbed her forehead and the pain vanished.
Betty was told that her exam was complete, and that she and Barney would shortly be returned to their automobile. She began conversing with the leader, only to be interrupted when another man rushed into the room and – seemingly excited – spoke with the leader in a strange language. They hurriedly left the room, leaving Betty alone.
Returning in a few minutes, the leader examined Betty's mouth and seemed to be trying to pull her teeth from her mouth. When this was unsuccessful, the leader asked why her teeth were fixed while Barney's came out of his mouth. Laughing, Betty told them that Barney wore dentures because humans often lose their teeth as they age. The leader seemed unable to understand the concept of old age. She tried to explain what a year was, but he didn't seem to understand.
In the dream, Betty asked the leader if she could take an artifact from the ship in order to prove the reality of the encounter. The leader let her take a large book whose pages were filled with symbols filled in columns.
She then asked the leader where he and his craft had come from. Betty wrote that, in response, from the wall the leader "pulled down a map, strange to me ... It was a map of the heavens" marked with numerous stars and planets. (Clark, 281) There were different types of lines between some of the stars which denoted, she was told, trade and exploration routes. The leader asked Betty if she knew where the Earth was located on the map. Betty responded by saying that she did not, being unfamiliar with the map. The leader then said that because of her ignorance, it was impossible to explain where he had come from.
Betty then suggested that humanity would like to meet other inhabitants of the universe, and tried to persuade the leader to openly announce their presence on Earth. Amid her pleas, the men brought Barney into the room. He seemed to be in a daze.
The men began escorting the Hills from the ship, though an argument broke out amongst the men in the strange language they'd spoken before. The leader then took the large book from Betty. She protested, saying that the book was her only proof of the encounter. The leader said that he personally did not care if she kept the book, but the other men of the ship did not want her to even remember the encounter. Betty insisted that no matter what they did to her memory, she would one day recall the events.
She and Barney were taken to their car, where the leader suggested that they wait to watch the craft's departure. They did so, then resumed their drive. Betty stated that the event was miraculous and exciting, but Barney said nothing.
Betty's dream concluded with her asking, "Now do you believe in flying saucers?" Irritated, Barney said, "Don't be ridiculous."
While Betty thought the dreams might reflect actual events, Barney was more skeptical, thinking that his wife had simply had a number of unusually vivid dreams.
Missing time
On November 25, 1961, the Hills were again interviewed at length by NICAP members, this time C.D. Jackson and Robert E. Hohman.
Having read Webb's initial report, Jackson and Hohman had many questions for the Hills. One of their main questions was about the length of the trip. Neither Webb nor the Hills had noted that, though the drive should have taken about four hours, they did not arrive at home until seven hours after their departure. When Hohman and Jackson noted this discrepancy to the Hills, the couple was stunned, having no explanation (a frequently reported circumstance in alleged alien abduction cases that some have called "missing time"). However, Betty was able to recall an image of the moon shining on the ground.
As Clark writes, despite "all their efforts the Hills could recall almost nothing of the 35 miles between Indian Head and Ashland. The subject of hypnosis came up. Perhaps hypnosis could unlock the missing memories. Barney was apprehensive about hypnosis, but thought it might help Betty put to rest what Barney described as the 'nonsense' of Betty's recurrent dreams." (Clark, 282)
By February 1962, the Hills were making frequent weekend drives to try and locate the area of their UFO encounters, hoping that locating the site might spark more memories. They were unsuccessful in trying to locate the site for several years afterwards.
As Clark writes, "In February or March [of 1962] warts appeared in a near-perfect circle around Barney's groin; they were removed surgically." (Clark, 282)
Private disclosure
On November 23, 1962, the Hills attended a meeting at the parsonage of their church where the invited guest speaker was Captain Ben H. Swett of the U.S. Air Force, who had recently published a book of his poetry. After he read selections of his poetry, the pastor asked him to discuss his personal interest in hypnosis. After the meeting broke up, the Hills approached Captain Swett privately and told him what they could remember of their strange encounter. He was particularly interested in the "missing time" of the Hills' account. The Hills asked Swett if he would hypnotize them to recover their memories, but Swett said he was not qualified to do that and cautioned them against going to an amateur hypnotist, such as himself.[1]
First public disclosure
On March 3, 1963, the Hills first publicly discussed the UFO encounter with a group at their church.
On September 7, 1963, Captain Swett gave a formal lecture on hypnosis to a meeting at the Unitarian Church. After the lecture, the Hills told him that Barney was going to a psychiatrist, Dr. Stephens, whom he liked and trusted. Captain Swett suggested that Barney ask Dr. Stephens about the use of hypnosis in his case.
When he next met with Dr. Stephens, Barney asked about hypnosis. Stephens referred the Hills to Dr. Benjamin Simon of Boston.
In November 1963, the Hills spoke before an amateur UFO study group in Quincy Center, Massachusetts.
The Hills first met Dr. Simon on December 14, 1963.
Early in their discussions, Simon determined that the UFO encounter was causing Barney far more worry and anxiety than Mr. Hill was willing to admit. Though Simon dismissed the popular extraterrestrial hypothesis as impossible, it seemed obvious to him that the Hills genuinely thought they had witnessed a UFO with human-like occupants. Simon hoped to uncover more about the experience through hypnosis.
Simon began hypnotizing the Hills on January 4, 1964. He hypnotized Betty and Barney several times each, and the sessions lasted until June 6, 1964. Simon conducted the sessions on Barney and Betty separately, so they could not overhear one another's recollections.
Barney's sessions
Simon hypnotized Barney first. His sessions were often quite emotional, punctuated with angry outbursts, expressions of fear, and episodes of hysterical crying. Barney said that, due to his fear, he kept his eyes closed for much of the UFO encounter. Based on these early responses, Simon told Barney that he would not remember the hypnosis sessions until they were certain he could remember them without being further traumatized.
Under hypnosis, Barney also reported that the binocular strap had broken when he ran from the UFO back to his car. He recalled driving the car away from the UFO, but that afterwards he felt irresistibly compelled to pull off the road, and drive into the woods. He eventually sighted six men standing in the woods. Commanding Barney to stop driving, three of the men approached the car. They told Barney to not fear them. He was still anxious, however, and he reported that the leader told Barney to close his eyes. While hypnotized, Barney said, "I felt like the eyes had pushed into my eyes." (Clark, 284)
Barney described the creatures as generally similar to Betty's hypnotic, not dream recollection. However, he described their eyes as being much larger, extending even to the sides of their heads. The creatures often stared into his eyes, said Barney, with a terrifying, mesmerizing effect. Under hypnosis, Barney said things like, "Only the eyes are talking to me" (Clark 291) and "All I see are these eyes... I'm not even afraid that they're not connected to a body. They're just there. They're just up close to me, pressing against my eyes." (Clark 291)
Barney related that he and Betty were taken onto the disc-shaped craft, where he and Betty were separated. Taken to a room by three of the short men, Barney was undressed by the three short men and was then told to lie on a rectangular exam table. Unlike Betty, Barney's narrative of the exam was fragmented, and he continued to keep his eyes closed for most of the exam. A cup-like device was placed over his genitals. He did not experience an orgasm though Barney thought that a sperm sample had been taken. The men scraped his skin, and peered in his ears and mouth. A tube or cylinder was inserted in his anus. Someone felt his spine, and seemed to be counting his vertebrae.
While Betty reported extended conversations with the creatures in English, Barney said that he heard them speaking in a mumbling language he did not understand. The few times they communicated with him, Barney said it seemed to be "thought transference"; at that time, he was unfamiliar with the word "telepathy". (Clark, 285)
He recalled being escorted from the ship, and taken to his car, which was now near the road rather than in the woods. In a daze, he watched the ship leave. Barney remembered a light appearing on the road, and he said, "Oh no, not again." He recalled Betty's speculation that the light might have been the moon, though the moon had in fact set several hours earlier.
Betty's sessions
Betty's hypnosis sessions were not as eventful. Under hypnosis, her account was very similar to the events of her recurrent dreams about the UFO encounter, with two notable differences: under hypnosis, the short men did not have large noses, and they had no hair. Simon suggested that Betty sketch a copy of the "star map". She hesitated, thinking she would be unable to accurately depict the three-dimensional quality of the map she says she saw on the ship. Eventually, however, she did what Simon suggested. Although she said the map had many stars, she drew only those that stood out in her memory. Her map consisted of twelve prominent stars connected by lines and three lesser ones that formed a distinctive triangle. (see below) She said she was told the stars connected by solid lines formed "trade routes", whereas dashed lines were to less-traveled stars.
Dr. Simon's conclusions
After extensive hypnosis sessions, Dr. Simon concluded that Barney's recall of the UFO encounter was a fantasy inspired by Betty's recurrent dreams. Though Simon admitted this hypothesis did not explain every aspect of the experience, he thought it was the most plausible and consistent explanation. Barney rejected this idea, noting that while their memories were in some regards interlocking, there were also portions of both their narratives that were unique to each. Barney was now ready to accept that they had been abducted by the occupants of a UFO, though he never embraced it as fully as Betty did.
Though the Hills and Simon disagreed about the nature of the case, they all concurred that the hypnosis sessions were effective: the Hills were no longer tormented by nightmares or anxiety about the UFO encounter.
Afterwards, Simon wrote an article about the Hills for the journal Psychiatric Opinion, explaining his conclusions that the case was a singular psychological aberration....
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